Well, the news came in on Monday that Wizards of the Coast, the makers of the legendary table top game Dungeons and Dragons are going to be making a new edition, this comes in the wake of controversy surrounding the 4E rule set introduced in 2008.

Has it really been that long? It seems like it wasn’t that long ago that I was looking up 4E and the supplementary materials which Wizards of the Coast made available, including a revamped Player’s Guide, Dungeon Masters Guide and Monster manual. Many supplements soon followed.

For many gamers, myself included, D&D holds a special place in their hearts, it being the precursor to most modern day video games and RPGs. Without Gygax’s baby, we would not have the innovations which we got and we certainly would not have as much creativity in the development of every other game which followed. Despite its checkered history and society’s branding of D&D players as social pariahs, nerds, or whatever else, the influence of this game in gaming and in pop culture cannot be overstated.

Therefore, it was with great skepticism, some trepidation and even heightened interest in which I received the news about the proposed changes. The most significant development as you may know by now, will be the greater involvement of players in the development of the new rules. It will be interesting to see if Wizards of the Coast further muddle the waters by ruining the game, or if the intended purpose comes to pass and we get a more unified table top gaming experience: I guess only time will tell.

In the interim, I will continue to play DDO. The other day my warforged Barbarian dinged level 5, which is quite an accomplishment given I have not really put in a lot of time in the world of Stormreach, something I aim to change in 2012. I am reading the D&D novel “The Shard Axe” in hopes of inspiring my imagination and my writing, but you can read more about that on the DDO link on this site. Enjoy!